Willie B. Thomas/Butch Cage: James "Butch" Cage (vocals, fiddle); Rosalie Wilkerson, Willie B. Thomas, Robert Jenkins.Personnel: Butch Cage (vocals, fiddle); Willie B. Thomas, Robert Jenkins (vocals, guitar); Rosalie Wilkerson (vocals).Liner Note Authors: Chris Strachwitz; Harry Oster.Recording information: Zachary, Louisana (1960).Photographer: Harry Oster.Louisiana fiddle and guitar duo Butch Cage and Willie B. Thomas were recorded in 1959 by folklorist Harry Oster, who sought to capture a record of the fast-vanishing tradition of string bands who played dance and worship music for parties and church services. Primitive-sounding yet compelling, Cage and Thomas's versions of rarely heard ancient country blues songs like "I Had a Dream Last Night" and "It Ain't Gonna Rain No More" are a window into a bygone age, while their performance of "The Dirty Dozen" brings to light a song that, like the blues itself, has been constantly evolving for generations.

Critic Reviews

Dirty Linen (p.64) - "The 15 songs on this album...were never released and represent the duo's broad repertoire of Cajun, country, blues, pop, and gospel music."Living Blues (p.77) - "[E]xuberant, rowdy, rambunctious, and most succinctly, just plain old fun."Mojo (Publisher) (p.106) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[V]igorous 1960s recordings...[with] the rural hoedown music of 'Hen Cackle' and 'Whoa Mule'."